William Hill Challenges Greek Monopoly

William Hill is seeking to
open a string of betting shops in Greece, but first needs to break the monopoly
of a local company.

An application has been
lodged with the Greek Government requesting the opportunity to trade. Currently,
the Greek gaming company OPAP dominates on of the fastest growing betting
markets in Europe.

William Hill is
prepared to test the case in the European Courts.

Company chief executive
David Harding said: “We believe the recent European cases mean that what is
happening is in breach of EU law. If it is rejected we will go to the courts to
argue our case and that could involve going to the European Court of Justice.”

The case takes place
against a backdrop of liberalization of gambling throughout Europe.

British gambling
companies have long argued that in many cases governments have prevented them
from setting up to protect local monopolies. They also argue that punters on the
Continent are losing out because better odds would be available if competition
were allowed.

OPAP has told Greek
newspapers that it fully expected William Hill’s application to be rejected
because of its monopoly agreement. However, Mr Harding said: “OPAP is a publicly
listed company so it’s clear that gambling is there for commercial benefit. It’s
hard to argue it’s anything other than a state monopoly.”